It got me thinking about the Cadillac Crest and we found this interesting info:

http://home.iag.net/~middlebr/crest.html

Martin.

Stingroo

08-28-09, 08:34 PM

Cool read. I hate the new crest personally. It needs the crown, like the one our cars wear.

robb257731

08-28-09, 08:41 PM

I miss the big V under the trunk emblems.

Angry Matt

08-28-09, 09:59 PM

I don't think the newer cars deserve a crown personally (no offense to anyone on here). They don't look like "royalty" to me. I like the fact that there's a new emblem, let the cool kids wear it on their sideways hats and 5X t-shirts, I'll know a real classic Cadillac person when I see one.

That round emblem might just work for the tattoo I've been looking for... thanks Martin.

Stingroo

08-28-09, 11:26 PM

That's a good point really Matt. Too bad I'm in the generation with those kids. :( I'm so lost and confused! lolol

Bro-Ham

08-29-09, 09:49 AM

I don't care for the new Cadillac emblem either. I do really like the V under the crests on my deVille. Maybe once Cadillac starts making true American luxury cars again they will bring back the proper emblem?! :) Proper model names would be nice so they aren't named like every other generic luxury car. Funny, the Escalade is the only big flashy Cadillac and it has a semi-fancy sounding yet a tad ghetto name. Don't get me started this early in the morning on the direction of Cadillac.... :)

Stingroo

08-29-09, 02:50 PM

No no, do go on Bro-Ham. I'm curious. :)

Bro-Ham

08-29-09, 03:58 PM

Sting,

I got into this discussion on the DTS forum a month or so ago. I will cut and paste my comments since I don't think I have enough alcohol in the house to go into deep thought far enough to re-write this book again.

Cadillac has plenty of competition and the new products are yielding sales. Cadillac may do well to use concepts that worked in the past for selling luxury cars that look and drive the way Americans want. The Camaro, Mustang, and Challenger demonstrate how going back to the roots of those cars has created a sales renaissance. Imagine going to a Cadillac dealership and seeing a long, low, and lovely car with a big displacement powerful engine, spacious interior styled after fine furniture, exterior designed to be classic and timeless, and interior and exterior colors in abundance - - all to create coveted and sought after masterpieces.

New Cadillacs need to be high tech yet simple. Not leading the technology curve but competitive. Our speed limits are 65-75 - - not twice that - - our roads are long and there are some curves. We all seem to be impressed with cars that lead by example. Cadillac needs to make a car that is truly unique in the American tradition. Like the re-birth of the American muscle cars, a new era of luxury cars is long overdue! Cadillac needs to make cars again that people MUST HAVE. The car that is the epitome of fabulousness and LUST! That will reclaim the market that, in my opinion, is ripe for the picking. Hopefully Kia won't pick this idea up before Cadillac...

Viva Cadillac!!!

Stingroo

08-29-09, 05:54 PM

I agree with you honestly. I mean sure, the CTS-V is nice, powerful, and stupidly fast, but really, we don't need it. It looks just like the old one, but a new grille, and some tacky side vents. [Opinions stated in this post are solely my own yadda yadda yadda]

But what we need is a real TOURING sedan. Something big, roomy, and blatantly American. Not a European knock off. :(

O Cadillac, where art thou?

Bro-Ham

08-29-09, 07:38 PM

Sting,

It's a shame. They are getting better but I can't say I like the current cars well enough to dream about much less consider actually owning one. When I was a kid Cadillac cars led the way. The leader and innovator. By the mid 1980's it was all over. No innovations, styling was absent; buyers noticed. Cadillac kept building the Brougham year in and year out trying to cash in on the original success of the groundbreaking 1977 body style hoping the aging customer base would hang on.

New luxury car customers wanted to associate with brands that were leading the way such as Mercedes with their sculpted classic 1981 S-Class followed up by the ahead of its time, handsomely styled and powerful 1986 300E. Audi made the slippery 1984 5000S which was copied by so many car makers. BMW got with it in 1984 with the sexy 3-series followed in 1988 by the awesome and gorgeous 7-series and next year the well executed 5-series.

When, in 1985, Cadillac tried to make contemporary versions of square outdated cars thinking they didn't want to alienate the geezers but the new breed of upscale luxury buyers rejected Cadillac. Fleet sales kept Cadillac alive. The competition improved performance and quality and then Lexus and Infiniti entered the market giving buyers more choices and Cadillac more pain. As much as we worship Broughams from the late 1980's and early 1990's, they were mere footnotes to the luxury car market in their day. We think they are classics now although when new they were the same car year after year. The re-skinned 1993 Fleetwood had hiding underneath a 1992 Brougham with a modern body stretched over it as evidenced by the necessary 9-mile long dash accomodating the raked windshield over the old body architecture. I'm not knocking it yet that was probably the way production of a new rear drive car could be justified to GM beancounters and it wasn't enough of a sales success for Cadillac to justify keeping alive with a new car after only 4 years. Too bad since if Cadillac had spent the money and made a new rear drive V8 platform that was state of the art the brand may have enjoyed a comeback.

A car marque that was once owned by the elite became a brand catering to either very mature buyers or a more blue collar buyer who made a buck or retired and finally realized the dream of Cadillac ownership long after the bloom was off the rose. The special essence of Cadillac was lacking. No more special colors - just basic stuff and fewer choices, only beige/gray/black interiors - no more red, white, etc., no more special editions and super high style luxurious styling that makes people excited and NEED to own it!

I hope Cadillac can regain the substance and romance that made the brand so great for so many years. Like I said, before Kia figures it out. :)

Stingroo

08-29-09, 08:32 PM

I personally LOVE white interiors. They're so awesome. A pain in the ass to keep clean, but still cool.

I have to say I hate all the plasti-krap in today's cars. Bring back actual pieces of trim.

Bro-Ham

08-29-09, 10:15 PM

Sting, White interiors are neat. What other car maker has them? Wait, Bentley... Caddy needs the modern equivalent of the white interior - - whatever the innovative yet fun all American thing it may be. A white interior would be a start, though. :)

Stingroo

08-29-09, 11:18 PM

Well, my grandmother's Mustang had a white interior, but I think that was because it was the 25th anniversary one.

I know because I once threw up all over the rear seat of that car. LOL

And I too like the V-crest better. So much so that I replaced the wreath on the trunk with a golden V.

Bro-Ham

08-31-09, 12:31 AM

Sven,

Nice duckies!

I'm a V guy too! :) My 79 doesn't have the optional opera lamps so it has extra V's in their place! They are silver, though, not gold, but the car comes by them naturally being born at the factory with them. I think the V's on my car mean it has the optional high performance fuel consumption package.

Dave

V-Eight

08-31-09, 12:38 AM

Cool read. I hate the new crest personally. It needs the crown, like the one our cars wear.

I don't like the lack of detail in the wreath or the missing ducks on the shield either.

JamesC

09-04-09, 11:54 PM

I found this recently regarding the Cadillac crest...

http://www.car-nection.com/yann/dbas_txt/mascots.htm

MT-ED

09-05-09, 12:47 AM

According to my original link......"The birds are merlettes, which are heraldic adaptations of the martin."